In The Grip of Fear
by Bookworm1978
Summary: Under the city, a threat silently spreads. When the turtles and their friends stumble on it, they end up facing their worst fears. Will they come out alive? (This was Flashbacks, but then I realized that it was pretty dumb to have another collection of stories. So I changed this to one story. The only suspense one I wrote to date. Let me know if you like it.)
1. In the Grip of Fear, part one

"Don? Where did we start going wrong?" When did you start hating me?"

"Leo, come on. I don't hate you."  
"YOu don't like me very much. Was it because I didn't come back when I was supposed to? Was it before that?"

"Leo, you know what? You really know how to talk a topic to death."

"I'll stop bringing it up when you start giving me some answers."  
"See? There you go again."

"Again with what?"

Donnie sat up suddenly and turned to glare accusingly at his older brother. Gesturing with a wave of his hand toward him, he spat out. "You are doing it again! Acting like some kind of stiff, annoying self-righteous prig! When will you ….Oh, forget it."

Donnie's voice rose a fraction with every word he said, until he paused a moment, and it was like all the building anger just drained away into the ground.

"Please, go on."

"You'll hate me." Don said tonelessly.

"Can't be worse than what you been saying so far." Leo sighed, looking tired, but resolute. "I been angry as shell with you once or twice, but I'll never actually hate you."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course, trust me."

Donnie turned to face him with the oddest of odd expressions on his face. He chewed his lower lip for a minute, then sighed. "Leo, I can't." He said in a soft, reluctant tone.

"You can't what?"  
"I...I can't trust you, Leo. I mean, once I could. Once a long time ago. I trusted you then. But now...You just kept betraying my trust. You…." He sighed again and looked away. "And now you come back in acting so self-righteous and so...so above the rest of us, that it makes me never want to trust you again. I don't trust you, Leo, to care about us anymore. Just...just leave me alone now."

….

"I don't trust you, Leo."

Those words hung in the air long after his younger brother walked away. They seemed to haunt Leo that night as he tried to sleep. He tossed and turned and couldn't drop off. The words ran over and over in his brain like a broken record.

Leo sighed, and got up. He settled down on the floor, got into a lotus position, with the instinct of heavy practice, and closed his eyes, forcing himself to slip into a meditative trance. His mind wandered in a way that was not the most encouraging. Mostly, it kept going back to a time when he knew Donnie still trusted him. A time when that trust was severely tested. A time when they were fifteen…

…...

Donnie stared at April, his sweet perfect wonderful rose, as she turned on him and viciously shown her thorns. She looked as though she had fallen into some kind of crazy, demonic rage. And worst of all, Donnie had no idea what cause it! "Get away from me! You disgust me!"

Donnie took a step back, his eyes widening with shock, even as he instinctively raised his bo as thought to defend himself from her hate-filled words. April followed his shaking steps. Her eyes were pitch black. Her teeth was the sharp fangs of a carnivore. How in the name of Newton did that happen? And strangely enough, The closer she drew to his hesitantly retreating self, the larger she seemed to loom. A tiny part of his brain screamed at him. "This is not logical! This makes no sense! There is no way, outside of being mutated that this can happen in real life. This is not real!" too bad the rest of his brain resembled tiny yappy poodles running around in frenzied terror and was in no way paying attention to the tiny voice of reason.

April, in the meantime had not stopped spewing vile, hate-filled words that his bo staff did little to defend from. "Get away from me, you three-fingered freak! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you for what you did to my Father! Looking at you makes me sick!"  
"A..April! What...what are you saying?" Donnie gasped, sounding as skittish and panicky as he felt.  
"Gee Donne. You're the 'smart' one." April said spitefully, doing the air quotes with her fingers as she taunted. "Surely you can figure it out. Unless you were just pretending to be smart all this time."

"April really hates me.." Donnie yelped. He would have bolted to get away from her, when a stone rolled under one of his feet, sending him hard on his shell.

"Everyone stay together!" Leo shouted from somewhere nearby, but it seemed to be from far away. As Donnie struggled to get off of his shell, he heard the faint splash of someone running away. Or more than one. Again, it was so distant, to him, he couldn't make it out. The very air around him took on the vibe of a nightmare. Part of him was waiting for Freddy to show up. The next moment, a hand grabbed his, and hauled him to his feet. A few feet away, glared evil April, his April, who was still spitting out words that tore his heart apart, and cut into his soul. He fought to run away, but a pair of strong hands grabbed his arm and refused to let go. "Donnie, listen to me."

April hates me! Why does April hat me? This makes no sense! His thoughts circled around and around to this theme. But at least it helped him ignore some of what April was saying.  
"Donnie. Stay with me!" Whatever you're seeing is not real. Open your eyes."  
Surprised that he had closed them without knowing, Donnie gulped and obeyed. He shuddered when April cruelly laughed at him "L...Leo? what is April doing?"

"April?" Leo blinked and looked down. Why was he looking down? April loomed high above them! What was Leo looking at? "Cowering, mostly….why?"

"You're not lying to me. Are you?" Donnie asked wistfully,

"You're not Lying to me. Are you?" Donnie asked. In Leo's ears, his younger brother's voice sounded terribly thin and shaky. It was one of the most pathetic things he heard in his life. Donnie's brown eyes were huge, staring, slightly glazed orbs. His pupils were so wide that they almost covered the brown. Leo realized that Donnie was not far from bolting, like Raph and Mikey did. And the thought gave him a feeling of dread. "I'm not lying, I swear. I'll do my best to protect you. But you got to trust me. Do you trust me?"

"I...I trust you." Donnie whispered faintly. Leo watch as he closed his eyes again, and took a deep breath. When he opened them, he looked steadier. And a weight was less heavy on Leo's shoulders. "I trust you." Donnie repeated in a more sure tone.

"Remember what you said about the mushrooms? What do the spores do?"  
Donnie's eyes widened, this time in realization. "Of course! This is a spore induced vision! I almost forgot!"  
"This things must have the kick of a kangaroo." Leo blinked, surprised.

"Leo, you have no idea."

"Just try to keep it in mind, and you'll be fine. Keep fighting the effects."

"I…" He glanced up as snarling, foaming April again, who somehow didn't seem as hugely tall as before. "I'll try."  
The moment hung in the air. Then he watched Donnie as he once again closed his eyes and took a deep breath, let it out, and took another. Only then did he realize that his own fears had almost overwhelmed him. It was so insidiously subtle, that he almost didn't even notice it. When he saw Raph and Mikey run down the sewer tunnel, when he realized how close Donnie came to following, he felt himself getting lost in fear and shame. He had failed them! He had failed as a leader! But...no, he had not failed completely. Donnie was still there. He had helped him get a grip on his fear. And once they figure out what is going on, Mikey and Raph will be okay too. He hoped.  
"Come on, let's find the source of this mushroom menace." he said, trying to sound brave and fearless. Like captain Ryan. "And end this thing."

Donnie stared at him like he grew a second head. "Wow, how long did you sit on that one?"  
"You like it?"  
"It's...better than some you said."

TBC


	2. In the Grip of Fear, part two

Writer's note: Don't own the turtles. Duh. Been forgetting to put this in. I just like making them suffer. :) Also, want to know what happened to Mike and Raph at the start of this section? Read New Enemies New Allies :P It's in the crossover section.

Raph coughed and his flash-reddened eyes flashed daggers at Mikey. When he could talk, it was a rougher growl than normal. "That. Was too close. Never do that again."  
"Aww, where's your sense of fun? Mikey asked, smiling despite the stars dancing in front of his eyes from the flash bomb, or the terror caused when he realized that bearded man was bearing down on them with that sword, and he couldn't see well enough to fight. That's over now, and it's obvious whiskers wasn't going to follow. "Where's your sense of decency?"  
"What's so decent about helping that guy out? He looked like he was able to handle himself."  
"But, those were the foot. What are they doing anyway? Shred heads been shredded."  
Raph frowned and rubbed his eyes to clear them of the flash's affects. "Don't know. But Karia has to be up to something."  
"You mean Leo's girlfriend?" Mikey asked coyly.  
"You mean our sister!" Raph barked. "Besides, yuck. Don't get sappy, gag-face."  
"I got a cute endearing face." Mikey pouted.

"Well, we better let Leo know what we ran into." Raph said, rolling his eyes at his younger brother's antics. "He may be able to figure this out better. He knows her sick little mind better than we do."

"Did you see those...whatchamacallems" Mikey's voice rang out as Raph took off in a jog. "And I thought you were ugly!"  
"Shut it!"  
"Okay, okay, chill Bro! I was just teasing." Mikey grinned , catching up with Raph easily. Reaching over, he patted his shoulder. "Your it, Dude!" Laughing he sprinted away, leaving a fuming Raph in the wake. "Grow up, already!"

Raph shook his head, as he saw Mikey vanish around a bend. He had to admire the bugger for how fast he could run. He was always the fastest runner among them. Almost against his will, Raph's mind flashed to a time, when they had to deal with those funky mushrooms that squirted fear spores like a new kool-aid. He remembered finding out just how fast Mikey can go if pushed to his fastest. He remembered the look of fear that drove him. He remembered…

What he didn't know was Mikey was remembering the same thing as he ran...he started running faster, as fast as he could. He ran until his sides ached…

Mikey Ran. He ran faster, then faster until he was running as fast as he could. He ran until his sides ached. He ran until his legs trembled so hard from weariness that he could barely but one foot in front of the other. He ran until his vision started fading in and out, and his surroundings tilted in a bizarre and nauseating way. He ran until he could literally run no longer, and still It followed him. It followed at his heels, neither faster nor slower, and never once did it stop.

Mikey remembered when this race away from a monster first started, It was not behind him. He was running from a Squirreloid, one that sounded kind of like Raph, and kept hitting him over the head. It was both terrifying and confusing. It was terrifying confusing!

When he ran into the dead end, he was well on his way to freaking. But then he heard something behind him. Raph. Wimpering, and screaming for something to go away, like he was scared for his life. Turning, he faced the squirreloid, and yelled. "You leave my bro alone! Or I'll go all Raph on ya, Son! Yeah! That's right! I said it! How you like that Popcorn!"

The squirreloid seemed to shrink somehow under Mikey's harsh words, and stepped back. Mikey saw it, and grinned. "You ain't so tough without your friends, now are ya? Who afraid of you? No one is afraid of you!"

And the squirreloid faded away like smoke. Mikey stared at the spot, then he raised both hands in victory. "All right! I showed them cracked nuts who's in charge, dawgs!"

But then something hit him on the head again. And again. opening his eyes in surprise, he yelped. The Sqquirreloid was gone, but Raph was in his spot. And he was thwacking him over the head with his fists, with a wild crazy look in his eyes that Mikey did not care for one tiny bit. Screaming in an uncomfortably high-pitched voice, he dodged out of the way, just in time for Raph to pull out his sias and start jabbing where he was a mere second ago. "Raph, it's me! Mikey! Your cuddly favorite bro! Stop trying to kill me!"

Raph growled and charged, with a single-minded expression on his face that Mikey seen on his face in a fight. Only difference was it's normally at someone they both fighting. "Bro, you're seriously freaking me out here!"

He had managed to dodge everything so far, but he was tired. And soon, he had something else to worry about. He noticed as he tried hard not to be killed by his brother, that his brother's shadow seemed to get larger and larger. Then, in a way that almost surprised him too much to remember to dodge the pointy sais, it managed to free itself from Raph's feet, and shook itself off. Thankfully, Mikey didn't forget Raph completely, and managed to dodge him enough to have the sai only dig a narrow groove across his plastron. It hurt, but it didn't kill. Jumping over Raph, Mikey turned and faced the shadow again, with a sick fascination he barely understood. The squirreloid freaked him out. Psyco Raph left him freaked out and scarred for his life. But what the shadow was slowly becoming froze the breath in his throat and almost robbed him of the will to live right then and there. There was nothing about it that should cause such a response. It was a shadow, admittedly one that was dark as pitch and seemed to suck all light into it. Yet the sight of it...of It! Was enough to cause him to forget even Crazy Killer Raph, and bolt for the nearest sewer tunnel. He left Raph yelling something about cockroaches, and ran and ran until he could not run anymore.  
The whole time, the shadow, the Nothing, followed in his wake. Never fast enough to overtake him. Never slow enough to leave behind. It was always there, cold as death, present as air.

At last, he fell from sheer exhaustion. And the shadow...the darkness...the terrible Nothing enveloped him completely.

Raph laughed as the overgrown cockroach turned tail and ran before his fierce fighting, down a dark tunnel. "HA! He screamed after him. "That's right, you better run, roach! That's round four, sucka! Raphael four, Mega Roach Zero! Go cry to ya momma! You nothing!"

the victory seemed to take the last of his fear with him, and the cockroaches vanished from sight. What he saw instead confused Raph. "What, Mikey? Where is that nut going?" he asked himself as he saw Mikey vanish around the bend of the pipe, at a dead run.

Breaking out into a sprint, he raced after his brother, calling out, "Mikey? Stop running knucklehead!"

Ten minutes into the chaise, Raph was swearing profusely under his breath. They all knew Mikey was the fastest of them, but this?! He almost never even saw him, and Raph was going at a dead run. IF he was going as fast as all get out, how in the world did Mikey manage to stay so far ahead of him? The only reason he knew he was going in the right direction was the sound of splashing or footfalls ahead, and on really long stretches of tunnel, he would catch a glimpse of fleeing green.

"When I catch him, I swear, I'm going to beat him senseless. What the shell is he doing?"

Twenty minutes passed. An hour. Then something new happened. The footfalls had been rather steady ahead of him the whole time. Now, they stopped. And the absence of the sound made Raph start to worry. His stomach began to tie themselves in knots.

Grateful that his stamina is better than Mikey's at least, Raph pushed past his exhaustion and made himself go as fast as he could go. He didn't even give himself enough time to wonder at his exhaustion. He should have not been so tired after an hour or so of running.

Turning the corner sharply, and nearly tripped over Mikey, as he laid half-submerged in the pool of stagnant water.

Raph quickly knelt over and flipped Mikey over on his back. "Come on...Be okay.." Raph growled, quickly reaching over to check his pulse at the neck. "Don't do this to me! Be okay! Or...Or I'll smack the green off you! I..I mean it!"

He felt wave after wave of panic wash over him. His hand shook so hard, that he was at first unable to even keep his finger on Mikey's neck long enough to see if he had a pulse. Swearing loudly at himself, he tried again. For a long moment, he felt no pulse, He felt nothing but rapidly chilling skin. His terror and grief built more, and he was about to jump back, certain he had somehow managed to kill his baby brother. Getting desperate, he reached up and slapped his cheek. The first time was fairly light. The second was much harder. He was about to really freak out, when Mikey moaned at the mistreatment he was getting. Raph closed his eyes and let his head drop onto his brother's plastron. "Thank you…" He breathed, not sure who he was saying it to, but felt the depth of his relief and gratefulness down to his toes. He left a mark on Mikey's face, but at the moment, he was too grateful that Mikey was alive to care. Moaning meant life.

As he willed himself up, and put Mikey into a fireman's carry, he realized something else. He was freaking out pretty fast there. Was this the spores at work? Did he almost give in to his fear, the one he knew of other than cockroaches? Of being too weak to protect his brothers? Of even being the thing that gets them killed?

Shaking his head to drive the crazy thoughts out, he started for the lair. He would have to come back for the others, but Mikey needed to get somewhere safe. Besides, he knew where he was now. Four blocks from home. Where they really running for only an hour? The little punk ran five miles, in a dead sprint…..er, at his fastest run in an hour? Who knew he had that in em?

TBC


	3. In the Grip of Fear, part three

Author's Note: This section has some, for me, rather graphic parts in it. Warning that there is character deaths ahead, many of them by decapitations. Nothing in explicit detail more is the acts of beheading shown, just the aftereffects. But one of the murders will be in all its horrid glory. If you are sensitive, please don't read. I still can't believe I wrote it!

Donnie threw his headphones hard against the wall. There it splintered into several pieces. He felt nothing. It didn't matter. The moment he both dreaded and eagerly wished for had finally happened. Too bad it happened before he was ready for it. He growled, and idly considered throwing his keyboard after it, bun no. It has far more uses, and anyway, you don't throw good money away, once you get laid off.

Instead, he sighed tiredly and let his head sink into his hands. The news had come near the end of the latest of double shifts he had pulled for the company. The reason? Downsizing. They didn't have enough resources...blah blah blah. He knew better. He was one of their best, and they fired him? This business is either seriously about to tank because of the long recession, or they are getting busted for hiring so many people with…..well let's just say their legality for living in America is questionable at best.

He was more tired than he thought, as he slipped into a deep restless sleep. It seemed like when he got particularly stressed, he kept returning to one of maybe five nightmares. One was drowning while Leo walked away, and Mikey and Raph taunted him and told him how useless he was. Another was the horrible day Leo nearly died. The day the had to leave the invasion and the city and regroup. But the worst no longer came as often as it used to, and it was inspired by the events of those strange blue mushrooms. And the time he first came to the realization that their lifestyle could lead to him losing everything…

Donnie didn't know when freaky demon April went away, leaving only terrified afflicted-by-fear spores- April. He also didn't care when it happened. He was only grateful it did happen. A part of him hated the rest of him for feeling that way. But the rest of him was only grateful that Evil April stopped stomping on his heart like a melon.

The mushroom growth was, to be frank, absolutely mind-boggling! He was fairly certain that they were nearing the center of the mass when he noticed April lagging behind them."Hold up, Leo." he said, tapping Leo's arm. Leo paused, looked back, and nodded tersely. Don went back to stand by April's side. "Hey, you doing okay?" He asked worriedly.

She looked up when He spoke. Then screamed directly in his face. He screamed in surprise, and fell on his shell, landing on a huge pile of mushrooms Waving the spores away distractedly, he hurriedly rose to his feet. For an instant, Demon April rose again to face him, but she vanished as fast as she came, leaving the sight of April fleeing down one of the side tunnels. "April! Wait!" He called out, as he started to run after her. But he stopped after a few steps. She was too fast.

Only then did he feel the wave of dizziness that seemed to hit him right between the eyes.

The next second, he felt Leo's steadying hand on his arm. "You okay?" Leo asked, in a worried tone.  
"Yeah...but April might not be."

"We can't do anything for her right now, Don," Leo answered, firmly. His voice was so full of confidence that Don felt himself began to hope again. "We fix the spore problem. Then the others will be all right."  
"Are you sure?" Don asked worriedly.

"No. But it's the best we got so far."

"Leo, don't these spores affect you at all?" Don asked hesitantly, turning to face him, unsure if he was feeling awe at Leo's steadiness, or annoyance at his hardheartedness.

"Of course I do. But…"Leo started to say, only to pause, a peculiar expression on his face.

"Leo?" Donnie started to say, then happened to look down. His expression turned to pure horror. A blade protruded from Leo's chest. Leo's hand, still on Donnie's arm spasmed. He coughed once, blood trickled down from his mouth. Then his face went terribly blank as his body slowly crumbled forward, against his studded brother. "No!" Donnie screamed, catching him. He noted that the blade slid back out with Leo's fall, but the rest of him was too concerned with finding Leo's pulse, even as he staggered back under the weight of his body. The tiny rational part of his brain knew there was no point. The exit wound showed clearly that it went through his heart. A clean kill. And that he should look for the killer before he was as dead as Leo. But the rest of him refused to believe the facts that were before him. Leo must be alive! He must be! "Come on! Be alive! Breath!" he pleaded, as he eased the body to the ground.

"Huh, always knew I would get him eventually." Came the sound of a familiar voice from above. Donnie's eyes widened more than they did before. "Karai?" he gasped, looking up at her face, now coldly watching the scene before her. He never liked her, but now, now he never hated anyone more in his life. "How could you!"  
"How could I?" She spat, leaning forward with the grace of a cat. Her eyes were now rage-filled. "How could he betray me? He had it coming!" She knelt down, and softly patted Leo's cooling cheek. "At least I made it fast and painless. He did deserve that much."  
She looked up at his expression and laughed noiselessly. "As for the rest of you? It's nothing personal. Father wants your master to suffer, and I do too. But there is nothing personal with you three. Just business."

"The others?" Donnie repeated, his own eyes narrowing. "the others will hunt you down, Karai! There is nowhere that you will be safe!"

"Oh, I think I will be safe enough," Karai smirked, as she pulled a sack out of from somewhere. Donnie blinked. He didn't see where it came from. That made no sense. Then he looked in the offered bag. And jerked back with a cry of disbelief. "No...this can't be happening!"

"The others are dead," Karai said, in an oddly gentle tone, as she spilled out the contents in that bag. Several heads rolled out. Raph's. Mikey's. Casey's. April's. All dead..  
"Now, what shall I do with you, Donatello?" Karai purred, as all the streanth in Donnie's legs seemed to leave him causing him to land hard on his knees. He barely felt the bruising impact. He looked at Leo's body, so still, so very cold now. He reached over and carefully picked up the head that once belonged to Mikey. The expression he had was oddly peaceful. As though he had no idea death was about to snatch him from the land of the living.

Finally he looked up, too stunned to even be angry anymore at the bringer of his pain. "What are you waiting for?" He asked tonelessly. "Kill me."

"No. I need for you to live long enough to tell your father what happened." Karai said, once more kneeling in front of him, yet still so much bigger than she should be. It made no sense. It was not logical. And he felt to dead inside to care. "Besides," She added in an almost tender tone. "Why would I kill you? You are so very pathetic, sweetie. So weak. It would bring me dishonor to kill you."  
"Too...pathetic?" Donnie gasped, as a wave of unexpected pain burned the numbness away. "Too weak?"

"yes, too, what did your brother call you? Sadorable? It's fitting. And if you have any honor left, you would kill yourself. But don't expect me to dishonor myself doing it for you." With that, she stood and vanished in the deepening fog that slowly gathered in the tunnel.  
Donnie watched her leave in stunned silence. Then he stared down at the death all around him. Tears streamed down his cheeks unnoticed, as he tenderly placed Raph's head next to Leo's. Then he put Mikey's on the other side of Raph's. Somehow it seemed right that they be together.

Then he picked up the severed head that was once April, with gentle hands. Letting out a sob, he kissed her on the forehead. But he couldn't speak. The words were unable to push past the lump in his throat. Placing her side by side with Casey's he sighed. It was the very least he could do for his former rival. Let him be next to her.

Then there was nothing more to do. There was no fixing this. And he just couldn't tell Splinter yet. He knew he should go fix the mushroom problem. But he couldn't seem to find the strength to get up. Or the will to care. He crumbled deep into himself, and as sobs broke out at last, he heard himself pleading in a voice he hardly recognized as his own, pleading with the dead loved ones around him "Please…..please don't be dead. Please let this be a dream. he moaned covering his face with gore-splattered hands. "Please...I failed. I am so sorry. I failed you. Don't be dead."


	4. In the Grip of Fear, part four

Author's note: Not as graphic as the one before. But a lot of what happened in the last chapter is hinted at. Decide for yourself if you want to read it. I won't be offended.

Leo paused as he heard the sound of something hard hitting the wall. He looked at the door of the lab, even raised his hand to knock to see if everything is all right. But then he sighed and let his hand fall back to his side. Don made his feelings very clear. He wanted nothing to do with Leo right now. He only hoped that when he got back after getting Raph where he was going...well, hopefully, things will get better.

He slunk into the living room and dropped listlessly onto the couch. Mikey was playing some kind of crazy looking RPG or something but paused it the minute he saw Leo's face. "Bro, what's up? You look like you just found out your favorite comic book character died or something."

"Nothing's the matter," Leo said woodenly, as he sank deeper in the couch, and closed his eyes.  
"Yeah, cause you totally look pumped right how…"Mike quipped, the worry in his eyes contrasting with the playful tone.

He waited for Leo to respond, and when it became clear that he won't, sighed in frustration. "Come on, talk to me! You know what I'm like when I get ignored."  
"Yeah, I still remember when you burped onion in my face when I was doing Katas a few times.."  
Despite the grumble, there was a faint smile that momentarily crossed the terrapin's mouth. Mikey took it as a hopeful sign.

"So, why risk that kind of horrific payback? Just spill and get it over with. Or...join me for a session of epic gaming. Your choice."  
"Just what are you playing anyway?"  
"Morrowind, the special two-player edition. It's boss."

"It has only one boss?"  
"No way, dude! It IS boss! You know, dope, Rocking? The most awesome thing ever?"  
"I...sure. How do you play?"  
"Well, let me save first, and I'll totally hook you up."

"Is it just me, or have you got, I don't know, Slangier than before."  
"Hey, I'm with….or was with kids a lot. I picked up a lot of leetspeek, ya know?"  
"Oh...sure. Clear as mud." Leo muttered as he watched Mikey's fingers move with lightening sureness as he saved his game and got a new game started. As he was prompted through a character creation with Mikey's character in tow, he sighed and asked, "How am I ever going to get through to Donnie? You have any ideas, Mikey?"  
"Oh! I thought that was what was putting your shell in knots."  
"Can you just be serious?"  
"I am...seriously confused why you picked Spellsword as your class."  
"...well, the personality test picked it for me. "  
"Dude, that was just a suggestion. You do know they expect you to do magic, right?"  
"Sounds like fun. Kinda. Anyway, you're changing the topic."

"Although I approve of the race. Dark Elf. That would be a good mix for the class."  
"Mikey…"  
"Okay, okay! Geesh. Well, let me ask you some questions, kay?"  
"Sure."  
"Did you talk to Donnie?"  
"You know I did. Several times!"  
"Was he receptive?"  
"A couple of times I thought he might be..before…"  
"Before what, Bro?"

"It went south again."  
Mikey made a face as he finished his own class questionnaire. "Yeah, you been having serious turtle luck with him."

"So? what am I doing wrong?"  
"Leave him alone."  
"Wait, huh?"  
"Leave him alone." Mikey paused the game again and looked at Leo, a strangely serious expression on his face. "Bro, you did everything you could, short of begging. Now it's all in his court. Let him work what you said out in his head. Give him time to deal with everything, on his own time. You try to do anything more, you'll drive him away."

"Mikey, I never thought about it like that." Leo blinked, looking back at his baby brother with an expression of surprise. "When did you get this wise?"  
"I told you before, you guys always underestimated me! I have been saying that for years...Woot!" Mikey suddenly grinned infectiously. "The boring parts over, now for the real game!"  
Leo shook his head as he joined his brother in the gameplay. He found himself slowly being pulled in. Enough to know what is going on anyway, and care how it affected LeoLance, anyway. But the rest of his mind was going over Mikey's advice. It was good advice too. But it made him remember all too well another time. One where he had to walk away, when every instinct begged to help the brother who needed his help, in favor of the greater good. One he still never thought of without a twinge of guilt

"Don't the spores affect you at all?" Donnie asked, turning wide eyes to stare at his brother in something like awe.

Leo sighed. He didn't know what to say. If he confessed just how much the spores were affecting him. If he confessed how sure he was that he was failing them as a leader, and how much it will lead to all of their doom, then how will Donnie keep trusting him enough to keep pushing through his own fear? But he knew that lying was not going to work either.

"Of course I do. But…"Leo started to say, Still thinking over what he was going to say to his little brother, but then pause at the expression on his brother's face. Donnie was still a bit wide-eyed, but now his mouth was wide open too. "Donnie? Are you okay? Why...why are you staring at me like that?"  
Donnie blinked. Still staring, he started reaching his hand out. "Leo?" He asked, his voice full of fear and worry.  
Leo took his hand. "Donnie. I'm here. What's wrong?"

Donnie's gaze dropped to Leo's plastron, and Leo could swear that he went at least four shades paler. He seemed to stagger back, his hands moving as though to catch something. But there was nothing in his arms. There was nothing to make him stagger. "No!"

"What the shell? Donnie, if you don't start talking." Leo warned as panic clawed at his mind like a pack of rabid kittens. Wait, kittens? he's been around Mikey too long! And where did that crazy thought even come from? Shell, get it together, Leo!

He woke up when he noticed Donnie was now almost sitting, and he was still frantically doing...something with his hands in the air. If Leo had to guess, he would say Donnie was trying to get the pulse of a ghost of something. Then his eyes widened. The pile of mushrooms Donnie fell in! That was a huge amount of spores he sent up! They must be affecting him! Leaning down, he grabbed Donnie by the shoulders and shook him. "Donnie, whatever you are seeing is not real. You got to listen to me."  
Donnie whimpered. He didn't seem to hear Leo at all. "Come on.." He muttered frantically. "Come on, Be alive! Breath!"

Leo blinked, his grip slackening. "What...who the shell are you talking to?"

He looked down. Nothing but air. "Who are you talking to, Donnie? Is….do you see someone hurt? Donnie, nobody is there. Everyone is fine."

Donnie's head snapped up, his hands finally stilled their frantic activity. Leo felt a surge of hope. Finally, he was getting through. HIs hope was dashed the next instant.

"Karai?" Donnie gasped, staring straight at Leo's face.

Leo felt all the blood drain from his face. "No, she's not here. Do you see Karai?"

He watched in fearful fascination as Donnie's face twisted in rage and pain. "How could you!"

"How could I….Donnie!" Leo shouted loudly in Donnie's face. "Donnie! Snap out of it! Listen to me!"

"The others?" Donnie said in a whisper, the only response Leo got from him. It was clear from the glaze of his eyes that nothing from the real world was getting through to him. He was locked in his own head. "The others will hunt you down, Karai! There is nowhere that you will be safe!"

Leo pulled away, his own mind reeling from fear, as he watched his brother drift further and further into his own mind. "Oh, no." He whispered, in a shaky voice. "What have I done?"

He started to shake. He had thought he was helping Donnie, when He got him to calm down earlier. But what if he only made it worse. What if too many spores caused someone to go psychotic. What if he would have been better off if Leo let him get away earlier? What if…  
Donnie's strangled moan of pain woke Leo up in time to see his taller brother fall to his knees. Hard. Leo flinched at the impact, even as he moved forward again to catch him, just in case Donnie passed out. He thought Don was pale before. That was nothing compared to the palor he had now. "Oh, Donnie..I'm so sorry." He said, leaning his forehead on Donnie's noting absently how cold and clammy his brother's skin was. Still he was unprepared for Donnie's response.

"What are you waiting for? Kill me." He heard him whisper in a voice that was completely dead. It was so unlike Donnie's normal speech that Leo felt tears fill his eyes. What was Donnie seeing that broke him so completely.

Trying one last time, he capped Donnie's cheeks with his hands. "Donnie. Please. Snap out of it. I'm here. I'm real. What you see is not real. Please. Hear me. I'm right here. Please."

"Too….pathetic?" Donnie gasped, his face convulsing right before Leo's horrified gaze.

"No. Nobody is calling you that! Snap out of it!"

"too weak?" In a softer, sad voice, as though Donnie was already accepting this as the truth. That he was sad, pathetic and weak. Leo felt the tears he been trying to keep back flow down his face. He was right in front of his brother, watching him practically self-destruct, and there was not a stinking thing he can do about it. Impulsively, he wrapped his arms around Donnie. Donnie was so thin. Why didn't he notice just how thin he was. "Please. I'm right here. Hear me. You're not sad or weak or any of that. You're my brother. I love you. Hear me."

He squeezed as hard as he dared. He spoke his most tender way. But Donnie never heard, never noticed. He hung his head, and weep. As he cried, he watched Donnie, with reverence. start moving small rocks around, even kissing one. And he saw his brother cry as well. Deep wracking sobs of grief. When he stopped, he looked up, right at Leo but Leo was not fooled this time. Those blank brown orbs saw only what was going on in his head. They saw nothing in the real world. They didn't see him. But the words he heard his brother speak, between the sobs that finally broke out, broke Leo's heart clean in two. It was a low, continuous chant, never getting louder, never breaking from its pattern.

"Please don't be dead. Please….please don't be dead. I am so sorry. I failed. I failed all of you. Please dont be dead. Please forgive me. I'm so sorry I'm so weak. Please let this be a dream. Don't be dead. Please don't be dead."

Leo jerked away, his heart racing, his mind running a thousand miles a minute. This is bad! This is very, very bad! What if Donnie was mad forever? What had he done? Oh, What has he done to his brother? Who was Donnie seeing as dead? Was it him? HIs other brothers? Who? And why did Donnie not try to call any of them that were left. Surely, surely it was not all of them?

He looked down the tunnel, and something Donnie said rang through his mind, causing him to calm somewhat. That the heart of this madness was down that way. That if they end whatever was guiding it, then the madness would end. But how could he just leave Donnie in the state he was in?

He looked back down at Donnie, who was curled up in a pathetic huddle, now and then, tenderly stroking one or another of the rocks around him that was really creeping Leo out, his continuous chant in a sob-choked voice that was starting to get raspy from thirst and constant use. How could he leave his brother like this? If an enemy came, he would never be able to defend himself. And if Leo did leave him, and still couldn't fix this? What if it was already too late?

As he stood there in indesigion, Raph's voice floated over to him. "Wow, Leo. Just wow. You really stepped in it this time!"

"sad, dude." Mikey's voice came up next, more pitying but still more mocking than sympathizing. But Raph's voice was cold and bitter.

"You failed us, Leo. You failed us all. You're not a leader! Your a joke! I should have been made leader, not you!"  
"Even I would have done better, bro. But hey, nobody's perfect. I'm sure we will forgive you in time…" A pause, then Mikey added mockingly. "If we are alive by then. Or sane. I don't think Don-san would be very sane, do you?"

"Lamolardo!" Raph taunted.

"Loser!" Chimed in with creepy cheerfulness. "What a Loser!"

"Stop it, you guys." Leo said, his voice cracking as he came out of his shock enough to fight the mocking voices.

"He says stop it!" Raph sneered, derisively. "Where did I hear that from? Oh, yeah. He told it to Donnie."  
"Yeah, he got Donnie to calm down. That was a good job, I guess." Mikey said, in a way that Leo could almost see the shrug.

"Yeah, but look at Donnie now!" Raph shot back. "Yeah, he got through Donnie's fear before. But now he managed to make everything ten times worse!"  
"Totally cracked. Nice move, Leo. Check and mate, bro!"  
"Shut ut! Shut up now!" Leo screamed.

Standing up, he looked at Donnie one last time, a long lingering glance that mutely asked pardon. But he was not going to do him any good if he stayed. If he continued on, there was a slim chance that he can do something. So, after searching Donnie for any and all weapons that was on him, just in case he did something stupid while Leo was away, Leo stood and did the most difficult, gut-wrenching decision of his short life. He walked away. the voices of his absent, yet persistent other brothers hounding each and every step, and the memory of his third brother tugging away at his soul and conscience


	5. In the Grip of Fear, part five

Mikey finally had to pull himself from the game. It was surprisingly fun playing with Leo. It was even funnier watching him try to make his first potion. But it was already after dinner. And if they wanted to be fed, he had to go and get cooking. The kitchen was pitch dark. Mikey felt his heart flutter in fear that he tried to repress, as he felt around for the light switch Finding it at last, he turned it on. Then screamed as an inky black shadow stretched across the kitchen wall. The next instant, he realized it was not...that. there were too many legs. And his instinct to bold and hide under the bed decreased. A minute later, Leo barreled in, demanding worriedly what was wrong.

Mikey felt his face grow hot, under the piercing stare of his worrywart brother, taking a deep breath, he laughed shakily. "Oh, it was nothing! Nothing! Stumped my toe just as I found the light switch." He lifted his foot and wiggled his toes in Leo's face. "I think I broke a nail! Hold me!"

Leo jerked his head back away from the offending appendage. "Umm, yeah...I think you'll live." He said quickly, leaving hastily. Just as Mikey hoped he would. Leo was so easy to manipulate sometimes.

Still, as he rooted through the pantry for an idea for a quick dinner, he battled the queasy shaking feeling inside. When he was a kid, he had this intense fear of this being of pure shadow. He called it the nothing. He hadn't believed it for years! But now and then, often at completely random times, it would rear its ugly featureless head. The worst was with the mushrooms. He thought then his biggest fear was going the be the squirreloids. But compared to..The Nothing...well, that was as bad as a broken arm compared to a paper cut…

Mikey screamed and bolted upright in terror. "The Nothing!" He gasped, staring ahead into the darkness. So dark. The nothing got him! It finally got him! Then his eyes slowly took in the faint light that was shining behind him somewhere. And the wall that was clearly the family living room in the lair.

A gentle hand caressed his head, causing him to jump and turn toward where the touch came from.

The nightmare faded even more as he looked, trembling with fear, into the eyes of his master and father. Realizing who he was looking at, Mikey relaxed a bit.  
"S...splinter?"  
He stammered. The he looked around again, Realizing that the light was from a number of candles on the end table behind him. They smelled faintly sweet. "What happened?" He asked as the nightmare vision faded from his mind, and the smell of sandalwood, the sight of their home, and Father filled it instead. "How did I get here?"  
"Raphael brought you home in a state of exhaustion." Master Splinter explained quietly. "He left to see what became of your other brothers about an hour ago.  
"I….I need to go help!" Mikey gasped, as Splinter's words sank in. He started to get up from the couch, only to be stopped by Splinter. "You are going to stay put, my son," he informed the terrapin sternly. "You are fatigued and must rest."

"But they might need me, Master!"  
"If they do, they will call. Until that happens, you will rest and recover."

Mikey stared at Splinter, and Splinter met the hard stare with unflinching resolve. Them Mikey seemed to crumble and looked away with a dejected air. "Hai, Sensei," he said softly.

Splinter's gaze turned concerned, but his voice stayed calm. "I will prepare some tea. It will help you revive."

Mikey Nodded wordlessly, and with a little more prompting, Splinter got him to lay back down again. He went silently to the kitchen, his ears slightly back with the worry and aggravation that he dare not voice to his son. Mikey watched him leave, with a livelier expression than was on his face a moment ago. Soon after his father vanished into the kitchen, Mikey yawned, and called out. "May I lay down in my room? I think I will rest better there."  
"That would be wise, my son," Splinter called back, in a distracted voice.  
Mikey got up, and with the skills honed by his master's training, and years of being Dr. Prankenstien, Mikey carefully and noiselessly made his way out of the lair and into the sewers.


	6. In the Grip of Fear, part six

Leo had barely gone a dozen steps when the ground fell from under him. He fell down what seemed like a large, steep hill, spinning head over heels before landing flat at the long stretch of flat ground at the foot of the hill. His swords stayed in their sheaths by some miracle, but Donnie's bo flew out of his hand. He stood slowly, trying to will the room around him to stop it's crazy spinning. And his stomach to settle down as well.

The first thing he noticed was the room he fell in wa stinking huge. The second thing was the room looked ancient. The third was that the bo staff was several feet away from him, buried in a stump of fungal growth. The fourth and perhaps most important point he noticed was he was not alone. True the room, vast a it was, was simply choked with mushrooms, they might count as being something else in the room. But that wasn't it. That was not what had drew his attention. What drew his attention was the giant eye staring at him. It was a huge mushroom...thing, with one vast eye that twitched and quivered. Then a voice murmured and gurgled in the stillness. "Fear...more fear. Mor pain! NOW!"

The small mushrooms fluttered around like worker ants around it's queen. They seem to obey it as well, and hurried toward Leo. Several managed to spray him, before he got to a standing position again. But he noticed fact number five first. He saw a canister that once held mutigen at the foot of the mega-mushroom eyeball queen.

This was what caused all this. Caused this creature to mutate into this thing! It was feeding on their fear and pain! Even as spores was blasted at him, Leo's mind went into overdrive, analyzing the situation, and what he should do. "This thing is feeding off our fear! There has to be a way to fight it."

"But are you able to?" Came a voice in front of him. A very familiar voice indeed.

Leo stared in horrified silence as Master Splinter stepped out of the shadows of the eye mushroom. "I am very disappointed, my son."

#############################################

Donnie couldn't move. He could barely breathe. The heads of his brothers and friends lay around him, as neatly as he could make them, but their voices still rang in his ears. He only hoped that Splinter was safe. He just couldn't draw enough energy or will to go check. What did it matter, anyway? His brother was dead. Casey, annoying as he was sometimes, was dead. April was dead. They all were dead, but not silent.

"Couldn't figure this out fast enough to save us?" Leo's voice whispered hollowly. "I thought you were the smart one, Don. We depended on you."

"Epic fail, man. Epic." Mikey's voice added sadly.

"I think he let us die on purpose." Raph growled. "I think he wanted us to die."

"I know he wanted me dead, anyway." Casey added bitterly. "Too bad for him, April died too. Or he would be so happy right now."  
"No! No, I never wanted this. I never wished any of this!" Don protested, covering his ears with his hands. Or what passed for ears for a turtle.

"He didn't mean for this to happen." Leo said sternly. "But he is weak. His weakness killed us all."

"Stop. Please." Don begged as tears streamed down his cheeks. "Please."

"Yeah, too weak and pathetic." Mikey agreed viciously.

"Just so sadorable. Too bad Master Splinter is stuck with the worthless fool." Raph added as bitter as ever. "Too bad he don't have the guts to off himself."

"Agreed. If he had any honor, he would finish the job our killer started. The only way to preserve our family honor." Leo sighed.

"Yeah! Off yourself, bro!" Mikey chimed in, seeming to cheer up at the idea. "Then you won't be alone no more. You can be with us! Bros need each other!"

"Aww, who needs him?" Raph sneered. "Still, he would be doing nobody any favors by remaining alive. We're dead. Splinter's ashamed of him. Shell, probably would fail to kill himself too. Just like he failed at everything else!"

"Pathetic."  
"Useless."

"Worthless!"

Then another voice spoke up, one that been silent until then. "Why? Don, why did you let me die?" April asked plaintively. "I tried so hard to be your friend. Why didn't you save me?"

Don curled up deeper into himself and sobbed. He begged the voices to stop, the pain to end. His body shook with cold from the water-logged, stony ground for so long, but he barely noticed. He didn't care.

################################

Raph ran toward the sound of the sobbing, not even noticing the mushrooms dancing around him. Soon he saw a figure lying on the ground. a very familiar figure. "Oh, shell. Donnie!"

He dropped on his knees beside his taller brother, and shook him slightly. "Don, ya okay man?"

Don didn't reply. He didn't seem to notice Raph at all. He just hugged his knees toward his chest, and he curled even deeper into a fetal position. His eyes were wide and staring and streamed tears. His skin was like ice.

"Donnie. I know you're awake. So talk to me." raph said gruffly. He shook him harder.

"No. Stop." Don moaned. "Please stop."

"I ain't till you answer me. What's the matter with ya."

Don shook hard, his eyes locked on some stones that circled him in a strangely tidy way. With a start, Raph rocked back. "You ain't heard me at all, have ya?" he said, in disbelief. "Don, wake up. I need to know where yer hurt."

Don shut his eyes tightly. "Too weak." He sighed. "All dead." His voice was raw, and cracked, barely more than a whisper. "I failed."

"Who's dead? Did Leo get killed, Don? Mikey's fine, if that's what you think. I got him. I'm fine. Look at me, you snot!"

"Please leave me alone…"  
"You talking to me, or to nothing again?"

Don sighed softly. "Your right. It's the only way…"

Raph watched as he sat up and started groping around on his belt. It was then that Raph realized all Don's weapons were gone. Even his shurikens. "What the...what the shell? where did you toss your gear?" He asked in confused worry. "Why did you toss your gear?"

Don seemed to have realized the same thing as Raph, and he visibly drooped. "I am pathetic." he sighed again. "Can't even manage to kill myself."

"What?!" Raph gasped, as rage and fear crashed into each other in his chest. "You say something stupid like that again, I'll….I'll smack you stupid!"

He got no reaction to the threat. Don didn't notice him. He was too lost in some kind of nightmare in his head, Raph realized. Raph growled. "Where's Leo?"

He got no answer. This no longer surprised him. He sighed as he watched Don pick up a rock and hugged it with a sob. Getting up, slowly, cursing Leo under his breath for leaving Don alone in this state, he tugged on his brother's lanky arm. "Come on, get up. Taking you home."

Don seemed to resist for a moment, and then sighed and let himself be pulled to his feet. His eyes flickered over and connected with Raph's, as Raph made him lean on him with an arm draped over his shoulders. For a moment, Raph hoped he was getting through somehow. That hope was dashed, when Don croaked hoarsely. "Master?"

"Don, it's Raph."

"Raph is dead." Don said dully. "Leo is dead. Mikey...April...Casey…I am so sorry, Father. I am so very sorry. Please don't hate me"

Raph sighed as his brother continued to ramble. Setting them both moving at as even a pace as he could manage, he only made soothing sounds as he listened. Frankly, he was already starting to wish Donnie was still silent.


	7. In the Grip of Fear, last Chapter

Leo's eyes grew wide. "W-what are you saying, Master Splinter?"

"I never should have made you leader. You were unable to handle the responsibilities. Raphael would have been a better choice after all. Or Donatello."  
"Or Mikey?" Leo snapped, his nerves finally snapping under the new attack. "What about Mikey, Master?"  
Splinter paused as though considering the suggestion. Then shook his head sagely. "No, that would still be wrong."

Leo smiled wryly at that. It was the touch of humor behind the smile that made some of the fear go away. It was his turn to shake his head. "You are not the real Splinter. You are just my fears talking. And I won't listen anymore."

"You never listen, that is why you are a failure as a leader."

He narrowed his eyes as he stared at the illusion of his Father. "You are not real." He insisted stubbornly as he drew a katana blade. "Your words mean nothing to me. Nothing!"

As he spoke, a beam of light struck his blade as he swung it into a defensive position. The beam reflected off the surface of the reflective metal and shown into the eye of the giant mushroom. Leo paused and watched as the creature reacted violently to the light. He looked from the monster to his blade and back. "So. that is what you are afraid of?" Leo asked, as he looked up to see where the light came from. He quickly noticed the crack in the ceiling. Then glancing around him, he quickly formulated a plan, and not giving himself time to get nervous, acted.

The smaller mushrooms swarmed their queen like the drones they were. Good. He could use that. Using the new growth to his advantage, he leapt from one mushroom head to another until he reached the crack. Without thinking of his own safety, he leapt and thrust his sword where the crack was, causing it to split wide open. Sunlight spilled in in a wide golden flood. The mushroom screamed in pain as Leo fell. Landing on a soft pile of fungal growth, he pulled his other sword, and used both to reflect more light in the direction of the mushroom menace.

The death of the giant mushroom, and all it's little worker mushroom came swiftly. Leo smiled wearily in satisfaction as the decay of the fungus around him quickly spread as far as he could see. Then darkness overtook him, and he knew no more.

##########################################################

Raph had managed to lead Don down one tunnel. Halfway down the second, however, his younger brother seemed to have decided that he had gone far enough and moved to sit down on a nearby ledge. Raph pulled frantically at an unresponsive arm for a full minute, then swore violently in a way that would have gotten him a good whack on the head if Master Splinter heard. "Don, get off yer fat shell or I'll make you!" he threatened. Then he sighed, and deflated slightly in the face of Donnie's lack of response. "Fine, take five." He muttered.

The sound of splashing drew his attention in the opposite direction. Leaping in front of Don, he pulled his sias out, preparing to defend himself and his brother when a cry from further up the tunnel caused him to relax again.

"Hey, dudes! Where ya hiding?"

"Over here, Casey!" Raph hollered back as he quickly sheathed his weapons again.

Casey appeared a few minutes later, absently helping April over some of the rougher terrain. "Wow, what happened to us?"

"It was those crazy mushroom things." Raph explained, with a shrug. "Though I'm foggy on some of it. Don said they caused us to see our greatest fears or something like that. Keep on the lookout. I don't want any of us blasted again."

"On the lookout for what?"  
The two humans looked around them, with a confused expression on their faces. Raph followed their gaze. Then he blinked and looked again. "Hey, where did they all go?"

"R..Raph?"  
Raph blinked again, and turned to face his brother, suddenly hopeful and afraid of what he would see. Soft brown eyes gazed dazedly back at him. Kneeling, Raph gently placed a hand on Don's narrow shoulder, while his other hand moved in front of Don's face. "Hey, you with me?" he asked as gently as he ever got. "You okay, man?"

Don's eyes followed Raph's movements, and the relief that poured through Raph at that moment nearly caused him to cry. He was quick to shove the impulse away, way too wimpy after all. But still the moment was there.

"Raph? Is that really you?" Don asked, as his shocked expression shifted to one of fearful doubt.

"Yeah, I'm good. You?"

Don's eyes widened as he took in the rest. A quick grin flashed across his wan face, only to fade again. "Raph, where's Leo? Where's Mikey? Where are they?!"

"Shhh," Raph soothed, looking stricken at the growing panic the other turtle was showing. "Mikey is fine. I left him at the lair with Father."  
"And Leo? Do you know where Leo is?" Don pressed, fear warring with some other emotion that Raph couldn't quite figure out on his face. But from his rambles earlier, he had a few guesses where Donnie's mind was going. He sighed.  
"I...no. But I wouldn't worry about him. Leo's tough. Heck, he probably was the one who fixed everything. He has to be okay."

He would have said more, but was shocked into silence when Donnie suddenly leaned forward and wrapped his arms around him in a fiercely tight embrace with a choked sob. The tears Raph was too proud to shed flowed freely down Don's already tear-streaked cheeks. A second passed, then Raph awkwardly returned the embrace. "Yeah, yeah. Glad to have ya back too, brainiac."

####################################################

"Hey, you okay Bro?"

A voice floated into Leo's awareness, causing him to slowly wake. "Do you need mouth to mouth?"

Acting more on impulse than thought, Leo's hand shot upward, keeping Mikey's face away from his. "Definitely not." He said shortly.

He felt his brother's grin, rather than see it, and his own mouth curled into a reluctant grin. This his facial features contorted. "Ew! Sick! Did you just lick my hand?! Don't you know where that hand been?!"

"Totally worth it to see the expression on your face." Mikey grin widened as he helped his older brother to his feet. He put one of Leo's arms around his shoulders, and Leo was grateful for the support. Though he could not resist rolling his eyes at the goof.

They had just managed to get up the hill Leo had earlier tumbled down when the rest shown up. Leo and Mikey stared as Raph neared them with Don in tow, and April and Casey following nearby. But not as hard as Raph stared at them. Leo stared back in puzzled silence, wondering what was going through his hotheaded brother's mind right then.

"what are you doing here?" Raph demanded at last, as April eased over and took over supporting Don, who didn't look like he was about to complain.

"where else would I be?" Mikey asked innocently.

Leo turned his head to stare at Mikey suspiciously. That was a little too innocent for his liking.

"At the lair! Where I left you!" Raph exploded. "An exhausted heap on the couch!"

"Relax, Bro! I'm fine!"

"Does Splinter let you leave the lair?" Raph and Leo asked at the same time. April giggled at that.

"Um...well, kinda?"

"What do you mean by kinda?" Leo demanded.

Raph facepalmed, one eye peered from between two fingers. "You snuck out, didn't you?"

"Hey, in case nobody else noticed, I did manage to get Leo out of that hole-in-the-ground chamber of pure evil here!" Mikey snapped defensively.

"How did you manage to find me anyway?" Leo asked.

"The homing signal Donnie recently put on out T-Phones." Mikey answered, not noticing the frantic kill signal the brainiac was making with fingers across his throat.

"What?!"

"You put trackers on us? Donnie!"

"When were you planning on telling us about this? Huh?"

Leo and Raph glared up at the resident genius, who grinned sheepishly and tried to back away a step. "Um...surprise? Hee, hee?"

#####################################################

"And then there was this horde of rats, with this demon rat at the head of the group!"

"And man! I really creamed that roach this time! I think it will think twice before messing with me again!"

Casey and Raph eagerly shared their experiences, literally talking over each other in their efforts to be heard. Now that it was safely over, it seemed to them like nothing more than a particularly intense adventure.

April sat near, sipping the tea Splinter made for all of them, listening to the chatter, and nodding sagely now and then, although she didn't even bother to follow either of them.

Mikey had gotten a stern lecture when they had returned. But was then allowed to be left to his own devices. Nobody knew if it was to celebrate or to calm jangled nerves, but Mikey spent half that morning cooking a breakfast that could have easily have fed ten or more. And he kept the kitchen and living room very, very well lit.

Don sat next to April, silent and pale. Like the others, he had showered, and Splinter made sure to wrap him well in a blanket, after hearing of how he was found on the floor lying in puddles. Splinter feared such a chilling would lead to illness without care. Donnie meekly allowed the fussing. He held his cup of tea with both hands, though he forgot to drink any, and seemed content to keeping his thoughts to himself and watching the others with an expression that was both somehow blissfully content, and extremely worried.

Leo sat off to himself, grateful that the nightmare was finally over. He nodded when Splinter joined him. "Have you defeated your fear, my son?"

"No, I only faced it."

Splinter nodded, and patted Leo on the shoulder. "And that is why you are a great leader."

Despite himself, despite his fears over his own abilities, or the still lingered in his brothers eyes, despite the mess that was the night before, Splinter's words caused Leo to smile proudly.


End file.
